Network coding with shortcuts

Information dissemination in communication networks is a key function whose effectiveness depends both on the chosen dissemination algorithm and on the underlying network topology. A series of contributions in statistical physics has uncovered the specific topological properties of small-world networks that potentiate the spread of information, most strikingly small network diameters and large clustering coefficients. Simultaneously, the spectra of dissemination algorithms, typically based on message replication, was recently enlarged by the advent of the network coding paradigm, in which intermediate nodes are allowed to mix information flows through non-trivial linear operations. Intrigued by the dissemination of information in broadcast environments with small-world topologies, we compare the behavior of competing replication based algorithms and their network coding counterparts. We show, both analytically and through simulation, that network coding requires a smaller number of transmissions and shorter propagation delays, conjugated with impressive steadiness under distinct topological configurations.